My Way

Chapter 1: A Golden Flower

Diary entry #24                                      7/15/202x

It doesn't look too terribly steep, but there's no doubt I'll break a few bones, maybe I'll get lucky and it'll be over before I know it, it's better than getting disintegrated by a nuke. I'd rather both me and Raksha have a quick death, as much as I hate to say it, or even think it, but what else can I do? I'll just have to risk it, and who knows? Maybe that story is true, maybe there are creatures down there, and maybe they'll help me, they can't be all bad, right?

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The thunderous sound of bombs rumbled in the distance from the mountain I had hiked up, even from here, the blast was almost as bright as the sun. They weren't lying when they said a nuclear bomb could reach for miles on end, I could feel the wind pick up and die down. I looked down at my husky, Raksha, she was staring in awe at the sight, her tongue sticking out of her mouth slightly, I almost grinned. Even in a time of despair and desperate measures, she could still manage to bring happiness and hope to me. I sighed and finally turned to face the cave towering above us.

'Perhaps.... Maybe we could stay here, I could learn how to make a fire and cook animals...'

I put one foot in front of another and made my way into the dark. As my eyes adjusted, it was too my surprise that a fair amount of light still seeped into the cave, and after a few more steps, I understood why. There was a small hole of on the caves' ceiling, beaming down a spotlight into an enormous hole into the mountain. My gaze transfixed itself onto the hole.

'So... this must be the entrance into the underground? It doesn't seem like there's another way down though...'

My mind began to wonder, it was becoming harder to think of a better option. Soon it became a choice between dying quickly or dying painfully, or rather, dying by the hand crafted abomination of an idiot. As much as I knew what my choice ultimately was gonna be, a part of me didn't want to die, I didn't want to bring Raksha with me, she's too young to die, and she's done nothing wrong, she's such a good dog- no, she's such a good companion, my bestest friend, my last "family" I have left. A burst of wind rushed through the cave, almost knocking me in, I whirled around and saw that this explosion was much closer than the previous ones, almost dangerously close. The clock was ticking now, I looked back and forth between the hole and the explosion, I finally stopped on the hole and took a deep breath, closing my eyes and crossing my fingers.

'It's now or never, I just hope and pray to god that we'll somehow survive this...'

I picked Raksha up the best of my ability and turned my back to the hole, facing the entrance of the cave and taking in what's left of my home. I smiled, tears building at the corners of my eyes and took a step backwards, then another, and another, until...

The image of my home had disappeared.

I fell. I could feel the wind rushing by me as gravity pulled me quicker to the ground, I must've gotten swept up in my thoughts or something, because it felt as if I was slowing down, as if time itself was coming to a halt, I looked up and was met with a bright light gleaming behind a black box.

NAME THE FALLEN HUMAN.

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I was in a daze at the sight of a sudden box asking for a name, was this a test? Or is it asking for my name?